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SHORELINE
FIRE DEPARTMENT TESTS "GREEN" TECHNIQUES
Zach
Wilson
Enterprise Reporter
The Shoreline Fire Department held a
fire training exercise on June 24 to test a
variety of "green" extinguishing techniques to
learn how to better conserve water.
As part of the drill, teams of firefighters
alternated inside of a Shoreline house on 25th
Avenue Northeast. After letting the fire rise in
the confined room, the team cleared out the
smoke almost instantly by releasing a wooden
flap covering a side window. Then with a few
controlled blasts from the hose, the
firefighters quickly and safely extinguished the
fire.
The typical water hose used by firefighters is
capable of shooting out over 150 gallons of
water per minute, according to Shoreline fire
marshal Mark Bunje. On top of the fire engine,
there is a larger nozzle that can pump 1000
gallons per minute. The water sprays so fast, if
it weren't attached to the engine it would be,
"like holding onto a rocket," Bunje said.
Yet during the exercise, the fires were
extinguished multiple times with only 75 gallons
of water.
"Using so little water attacking these fires,
I'm having a hard time detecting it," said Bunje.
Firefighter Gabe Debay said that one technique
is to spray above the fire to cause a steam
effect that essentially suffocates the fire.
However, Debay said it is rarely used during
rescue situations since it can be dangerous and
cause serious burns if firefighters get too
close.
Prior to setting the room ablaze, firefighters
cut a hole in the roof to prevent the room from
getting too hot and causing a flash fire.
In the past, because of all the smoke, it was
difficult for firefighters to really see the
starting point of the fire. Now with the help of
new thermal imaging cameras (TICs), they can
determine the hottest point of each inferno.
"[We] shoot it at the base of the fire, because
that is where the chemical reaction is
happening," said Bunje.
During the exercise, in the room next to the
fire, the monitor on the thermal imaging camera
read 200 degrees. The smoke-filled ceiling was
300 degrees. When pointing the device at the
heart of the fire, no more than 30 feet in front
of the private observation area, the red line
jumped over the 1000 degree mark.
Unlike the previous cameras, which took longer
to detect heat, these $15,000 devices adjust
very quickly and sense infrared heat through the
smoke in under a second, said Bunje.
"Those are excellent," said Debay. "Not only
great for looking for people, but they help us
find hot spots that are hidden behind walls."
During the training sessions, which run multiple
days, the firefighters decreased the amount of
water they used each time they ran the drill;
from 400 gallons, to 100 gallons, then to 75
gallons. The firefighters saw it as a friendly
competition between themselves to see who could
use the least amount of water.
"I think the best that we saw for a given series
of about four exercises was about 75 gallons
total," said Bunje.
Melanie Granfors, spokesperson for the Shoreline
Fire Department, said that many things must
first be considered before deciding the location
of one of these house burning drills. Before the
house is burned, both the fire department and
city must approve it and the owner must clear
out all hazardous material.
Bunje said they get many offers from people
looking to have their houses burned down. He
said for home owners, it is much cheaper then
getting a demolition permit and afterwards it
only takes a few dump trucks to haul away the
scrap metal and ashes.
Since this was the first attempt to look at how
the station can conserve water, Bunje is hoping
to retrieve even more data in future tests.
Right now, because the amount of water being
used is so low, it's difficult for him to get
accurate readings.
"We always try to be conscious," said
firefighter Debay regarding their use of water.
"[But] this was probably the first exercise
where it was our number one priority." |
